Studying adaptive radiations, such as Darwin's finches from the Galápagos Islands, can give us key insights into generalities of ecomorphological diversification. This paper from the Karanth lab examines morphological diversification in Hemidactylus geckos from Peninsular India that occur in a wide range of microhabitats.
Summary:
Astrobatrachus kurichiyana, the new frog species discovered in the Western Ghats. Photo : S.P.Vijaykumar
An international team of scientists has identified a new species of frog in the Western Ghats, once again highlighting the rich biodiversity of the region.
The Centre for Ecological Sciences at IISc has a herbarium with a large collection of over 16000 species of plants from Karnataka, Western and Eastern Ghats and other parts of peninsular India. Over the past twelve years, Prof. Sankara Rao, a retired professor from the Biochemistry department of IISc and an expert botanist, and his small team of volunteers, have been digitizing the entire collection and produced a Digital Flora of Karnataka that is freely available online (http://florakarnataka.ces.iisc.ac.in).
Wind-farms are the new top predator in the food chain.
Event: SPEEC-UP 2018 Bangalore.
Date Time venue: 31 August 2018, 13:45 hrs., CES Seminar Hall, CES, New Biological Sciences Building, IISc.
The Student Conference on Conservation Science (SCCS) – Bengaluru brings together young researchers in the science and practice of biodiversity conservation. The conference facilitates interaction, encourages exchange of research ideas and methods, sharing of knowledge and experience related to conserving wildlife and helps build contacts and capacity. As a sister conference to SCCS-Cambridge, SCCS-Bengaluru focuses on attracting student participants, primarily from countries in South and South-east Asia, and Africa.
Photo Credit: Viraj Torsekar
On Open Day, CES students, faculty and staff came together to put up fun-filled displays and activities showcasing research in the department as well illustrating broader principles in ecology and evolution.
With live exhibits, videos, movie screening, posters, nature walks and, most importantly, games, the public could experience diverse facets of ecology and evolution.
Previous studies have argued that movement of organisms typically does not favour animals helping or cooperating each other. Therefore, in species that exhibit collective movement and fission-fusion among groups, cooperation is considered unlikely to occur. In a recent paper published in PLoS Computational Biology, Jaideep Joshi (PhD student), Vishwesha Guttal and collaborators from Germany and USA challenge this common perception.